The Phantom Cellist
by Evenmoor
Summary: A mysterious Jedi arrives at the Jedi Temple, with only an oddly small lightsaber and a musical instrument. It's one step closer to the epic duel... of the cellos!


**A/N: **This was written in a fit of extreme silliness. I highly recommend you watch "Cello Wars" by The Piano Guys on YouTube, and everything will make sense. The title of this story is shamelessly borrowed from it, as is the basis for the story. I do not own either Star Wars, nor the Piano Guys (but their music is awesome!).

~o0o~

No one knew where he'd come from. He just appeared in the Jedi Temple one day and took up residence. It was clear that the Force was strong with him - he practically resonated with power. But he never spoke a word, not in any of the billions of languages known to the Jedi. It was obvious that he _understood_ them; he just refused to speak, not even to give his name. It was a very unusual situation for the Jedi. No one knew what to do with him. They would never kick a fellow Jedi out of the temple, after all, and he clearly _was _a Jedi, despite the fact that no one recognized him or knew where he came from. The fact that he was human meant very little, as humans were common throughout the galaxy. And, for a human, he had a fairly common appearance, too: brown hair, dark eyes, light-colored skin, a wide face and a somewhat heavy brow.

In fact, the only things truly distinctive about him (beyond his silence) were the few belongings with which he arrived: a strangely stunted lightsaber and an odd-looking stringed instrument, white in color and about as tall as a seated man.

For a time, the other Jedi at the temple tried to engage the silent man in conversation, attempting to elicit some sort of response from him. But despite all their cajoling, nothing seemed to draw him out of his silence. And attempts to touch him with the Force were entirely ineffective; it was as if he were sheathed in some sort of impenetrable barrier of power.

It was truly bizarre.

Finally, they decided to leave him alone and let him be. He wasn't causing any trouble, though his presence did prove to be a bit of a distraction to the young padawan learners, who were unable to control their childish curiosity around him. Some even took to practicing their shadow craft on him, trying to sneak up on him from innocuous corners and the like. It was clear that he knew what they were up to, to judge by the smile on his face.

Then, late one night, one of the padawans was sneaking around the temple on a dare. The place was huge, and even at full capacity there were still many places to hide. He found himself in one of the tall spires, feeling quite smug at having avoided the knights and masters and teachers and all. Then he heard the music. Drawn by the strange sound, he followed it to its source.

It was, of course, the silent man. Sitting on a chair with the S-shaped instrument before him, he was actually playing it using a lightsaber no larger than a child's. The child cocked his head curiously - he had never heard of anyone using a lightsaber to make music. He had always thought that the blade would cut right through any instrument. Then he noticed the odd sparkle to the strings. The boy closed his eyes for a moment and concentrated, just as he had been taught, focusing his will on the Force. Reaching out with his feelings, he found that the instrument was actually infused with the Force itself, producing the strange, haunting music when the lightsaber vibrated across it.

But as he listened more closely, he realized that he could hear more than one strain to the music. At first, it was so quiet, distant, that it could've been an echo, but then it broke off and started playing its own haunting melody. Opening his eyes, the padawan noticed that, facing the silent man, was almost a mirror image of him. He seemed woven from the shadows, like a phantom of the Force. As the boy focused on this ghostly figure, it became more clear to him. It _was_ like the silent man's mirror image, or more like his twin, for he wore dark robes and played a black instrument with a red lightsaber. As the two played, their melodies, point and counterpoint, grew more and more complex, and their expressions of concentration grew more intense. Finally, they reached a grand crescendo before falling to silence, the only sound being the soft hum of the lightsabers.

The silent man narrowed his eyes at his shadow-twin. "One day..." he said, his voice so soft the boy thought he might have imagined it.

The shadow-twin smirked. "Until then," he replied.


End file.
